Rangehood installation cost in NZ: what it costs to fit one, and what pushes it up

How much does it cost to install a rangehood in NZ?

From about $450 + GST to fit a rangehood you supply where the duct and power are already there, and from $700 + GST with the hood supplied, on Phasetech Electrical's published 2026 prices. A brand installation fee such as ROBAM's is $400 including GST. New ducting through a solid wall, cabinet changes or a roof-mounted fan take it to $1,000–1,500 and more.

Most of the price is labour, so the question that matters is how much has to change. Phasetech's general rates, for example, are $95 + GST for the first hour including local travel and $80 + GST for each hour after, which is why a like-for-like swap is cheap and a new duct route is not.

What makes a rangehood installation cost more?

Anything that is not already there. A like-for-like swap into an existing duct and socket is a short job. New ducting through a wall or roof, a new power point, cutting cabinetry or a pelmet to fit a different-sized hood, an island hood hung from the ceiling, or a change from recirculating to ducted all add hours and sometimes a second trade.

• A new duct route. Running a duct to outside through a timber-framed wall is one thing; through solid brick it needs a core drill, which is the main extra in Phasetech's complex example.
• Going through the roof. A roof outlet or roof-mounted fan means working in the ceiling space and sealing a penetration in the roof, which is why it starts at $1,500+.
• Power. If there is no socket or isolating switch where the hood goes, an electrician adds one, with certification.
• A different size or shape. A 900 mm hood replacing a 600 mm one usually means altering the cupboard or pelmet above.
• Island and ceiling hoods. They need fixing into the ceiling framing and a duct run across the ceiling.
• Recirculating to ducted. The cheapest hoods filter and return the air to the room. Converting to ducted adds the duct work above.

Do you need an electrician to install a rangehood?

Not if the hood plugs into a socket that is already there: that is no more electrical work than plugging in a toaster. WorkSafe says an owner who lives in the house may also connect and disconnect fixed-wired appliances, unpaid. A new socket or circuit is different: it needs a registered electrician, or an owner-occupier must have it tested and connected by a licensed electrical inspector.

The fixing and ducting are not restricted work, so a competent homeowner or a builder can do them. The catch is the hole: a duct through the cladding or roof has to be flashed and sealed so it stays watertight, and on a weathertight-sensitive house that is worth paying for. If you are changing the kitchen at the same time, our guide to who has to be licensed on a kitchen job covers the plumbing, gas and wiring rules, and does a kitchen renovation need consent covers the building side.

Whoever does fixed wiring for you should give you the certification for it. Keep it with the house papers.

Does a rangehood have to be ducted outside in NZ?

In a rental, yes. The healthy homes ventilation standard says a kitchen fan or rangehood installed on or after 1 July 2019 must vent outside and either be at least 150 mm in diameter, including the ducting, or extract at least 50 litres per second. Tenancy Services says recirculating rangehoods do not meet the standard.

In a home you own and live in, a recirculating hood is allowed, but a ducted one removes the steam and cooking moisture rather than filtering the grease and putting the damp air back. In a New Zealand house that is the difference that shows up as condensation on winter windows. If you let the house out, or might, fit ducted now: it costs less in the middle of a kitchen renovation than as a retrofit.

Tenancy Services suggests asking the installer to put the fan diameter, ducting and flow rate in writing. That paperwork is what a landlord needs to show the kitchen complies.

Worked example: three rangehood jobs, priced

On Phasetech's published prices, swapping an old canopy hood for a new one you have bought, into the same duct and socket, is about $517.50 including GST plus the hood. The same swap with the duct cored through a brick wall and the cupboard above altered is about $1,035. Putting the fan on the roof is $1,500 or more.

Inside a full kitchen renovation the rangehood is one line of the appliance budget, which CheckMyBuilder puts at $3,000–20,000 for all the appliances together (July 2026). Our cost calculator shows where that sits in a whole kitchen for your size and region.

How long does it take to install a rangehood?

A like-for-like swap is usually a few hours. A new duct route through a wall or roof, a new power point or cabinet changes can take most of a day, and if the job needs a second trade, such as a builder for the cabinetry or a roofer for the penetration, it is booked around them.

If the rangehood is part of a facelift, fit it after the new splashback and before the final clean: clearances between the cooktop and the hood come from the cooktop maker's installation instructions, so have them to hand. See what a kitchen facelift costs and splashback costs.